China Asserts Nuclear Influence Before Key Iran Deal Talks
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China Asserts Nuclear Influence Before Key Iran Deal Talks
Bloomberg-Nov 26,2021
China is drawing a link between nuclear non-proliferation talks and a western submarine pact in the Pacific that it opposes, potentially adding another obstacle to the tortured process of reaching a deal with Iran.
Beijing had already emerged as a linchpin to the success or failure of talks resuming Monday in Vienna on how to restore the 2015 nuclear accord between Tehran and world powers.
The decision by China’s envoy at the International Atomic Energy Agency this week to elevate Beijing’s concerns over the so-called Aukus atomic submarine deal between the U.S., U.K. and Australia alongside international worries about Iran’s nuclear program suggests Chinese ambitions are growing.
“Why do the U.S. and U.K. say Iran can’t enrich uranium above 3.7%, while on the other hand they plan to transfer tons of highly enriched 90% material to Aukus?” China’s envoy to the IAEA, Wang Qun, said on Friday. “This is an example of a double standard.”
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In a note circulated earlier among diplomats in Vienna and seen by Bloomberg, Wang argued the Aukus agreement “constitutes serious risks of nuclear proliferation.” On Friday, he went further, branding Aukus a “small Anglo-Saxon clique” that could prompt more countries to go nuclear.
China said that the inclusion of its concerns at this week’s IAEA meeting should be the start of a new international process to scrutinize the Aukus deal. Wang sat next to his Russian counter part, Ambassador Mikhail Ulyanov, in a rare joint briefing of the two powers. The Russian representative echoed Wang’s concern.
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